Amex Platinum

Disclosure: This article contains affiliate links. If you make a booking through these links, we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. ✅ Quick Answer In Germany, the Platinum (around €720 a year, billed monthly) is worth it for frequent flyers who’ll use its lounges and hotel status, the Gold (about €144 a year, often free the first year) is the value pick for dining and everyday spend, and the Payback Card is a genuinely free option for people who travel only occasionally. The Blue Card is also free but earns nothing unless you pay an extra €30 a year to opt into Membership Rewards. The honest German verdict first Most people in Germany reach straight for the Platinum because it’s the famous one — and a chunk of them waste hundreds of euros doing it. So before the shiny metal card wins the argument: if you won’t be at an airport in double digits this year, the Platinum is the wrong card for you, and I’d rather tell you that than take your click. The good news is Germany has a genuinely free Amex too. Here’s the whole lineup, honestly ranked. ...

Disclosure: This article contains affiliate links. If you make a booking through these links, we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. ✅ Quick Answer American Express earns Membership Rewards points and travel perks like lounge access and hotel status, but it charges an annual fee (aside from the free Payback card) and isn’t accepted everywhere, while Revolut spends in 150+ currencies at the real interbank rate with no foreign transaction fee on its free Standard plan, saving around €30–60 in fees on a typical €2,000 trip compared with a card charging 1.5–3% markup. The smartest setup is carrying both: Amex for big, perk-earning bookings and Revolut for everyday foreign spending and ATM withdrawals. Stop trying to pick a winner Most “Amex vs Revolut” articles try to crown one. That’s the wrong question, and chasing it costs you money. These two cards solve different problems — and the travelers who save the most carry both. I do. Let me show you why, then you can decide whether you even need the paid side at all. ...

Disclosure: This article contains affiliate links. If you make a booking through these links, we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. ✅ Quick Answer Choosing between the Amex Platinum and Gold comes down to how often you fly: the Platinum costs about €55 a month (roughly €720 a year) and pays off through lounge access, automatic Hilton and Marriott Gold hotel status, and bigger annual credits, while the Gold costs about €144 a year — often free the first year — and earns the same Membership Rewards points on dining and everyday spend instead. The simplest test is counting last year’s airport visits: double digits favors the Platinum, single digits favors the Gold. The honest answer in one question Forget the brochures. Amex Platinum vs Gold comes down to a single question: how many times were you at an airport last year? Double digits, and the Platinum’s lounges and status pay for themselves. Single digits, and you’re about to pay a premium fee for perks you’ll watch go unused — the Gold is your card. Everything below just shows the working. ...

Disclosure: This article contains affiliate links. If you make a booking through these links, we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. ✅ Quick Answer The Amex Platinum costs around €55 a month (roughly €720 a year) in Germany, and it’s worth that fee mainly through the American Express Global Lounge Collection, automatic Hilton Honors Gold and Marriott Bonvoy Gold status, and a welcome bonus that can cover most of a flight — for the author, 13 airport visits in a year paid for the lounges alone. If you won’t rack up double-digit airport visits or use the annual credits, the Gold or the free Payback card is the better fit. The short version I almost talked myself out of the Amex Platinum twice. A premium annual fee for one credit card sounds indulgent — and if you don’t travel much, it absolutely is. So let me save you time: if you won’t be at an airport in double digits this year, stop reading and look at the Gold or the free Payback card instead. Still here? Then you might be exactly who this card is built for, and the rest of this Amex Platinum review is for you. ...

Disclosure: This article contains affiliate links. If you make a booking through these links, we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. ✅ Quick Answer In the UK, the Amex Platinum costs £650 a year and suits frequent flyers who’ll use its lounges and hotel status, while the Preferred Rewards Gold costs £195 a year and is free the first year for everyday and dining spend. The UK also has a genuinely free option, the American Express Rewards Credit Card, which costs £0 and still earns Membership Rewards points. The honest UK verdict first The UK is unusual: it has a genuinely free Amex that earns Membership Rewards, which makes the £650 Platinum a much harder sell than people admit. So before the prestige wins: if you won’t use lounges and the Platinum’s credits, the free Rewards card or the £195 Gold will leave you better off. Here’s the full UK lineup, honestly ranked. ...

Disclosure: This article contains affiliate links. If you make a booking through these links, we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. ✅ Quick Answer The best Amex travel card for most frequent flyers is the Platinum, whose ~€55/month (about €720/year) fee in Germany paid for itself through 13 airport lounge visits and a welcome bonus that covered most of a return flight. The Gold, at roughly €144/year and often free the first year, is the smarter pick for people who spend more on dining and everyday life than on flights, while the no-fee Payback Card suits anyone traveling only a couple of times a year. The honest truth first I had the application open in one browser tab and a calculator in the other, and I was about to close both. A high annual fee for a single credit card sounds absurd — that’s exactly what I thought, sitting at my kitchen table, shaking my head. I looked at the best Amex travel card everyone kept recommending, the Platinum, and I put it away. Twice. ...

Disclosure: This article contains affiliate links. If you make a booking through these links, we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. ✅ Quick Answer In the USA, the Amex Platinum jumped to $895 a year and suits frequent flyers who’ll use its lounge access and statement credits, while the Gold at $325 a year is the stronger value pick for heavy dining and grocery spenders and the Green at $150 a year is a lighter travel-points option. Anyone who wants zero annual fee can instead get a no-fee cash-back Amex like Blue Cash Everyday, which costs $0 but earns cash back rather than Membership Rewards. The honest US verdict first The Amex Platinum just jumped to $895 — and the internet is full of people defending a fee they don’t come close to earning back. So I’ll say it plainly: most Americans reading this should not pay $895 for a credit card. The Platinum is a phenomenal card if you live in airports and burn its credits; for everyone else it’s an expensive flex. Here’s the full US lineup, ranked by who it actually fits. ...

Disclosure: This article contains affiliate links. If you make a booking through these links, we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. ✅ Quick Answer The best Amex card in France is the Carte Platinum at around €708 a year (about €59/month) for frequent flyers who’ll use its lounges and hotel status, while the Carte Gold costs roughly €192 a year and is usually free the first year for dining and everyday Membership Rewards. Anyone who flies Air France or KLM and wants zero fee can instead get the free Air France KLM – American Express Silver card, which earns Flying Blue miles instead of Membership Rewards. The honest French verdict first In France the Carte Platinum carries serious prestige — and prestige is exactly what makes people overpay. So let me be the one to say it: if you don’t fly often, the Platinum’s ~€708 a year is money you won’t earn back. France also has free co-branded options most “best card” lists skip. Here’s the whole picture, ranked by who each card genuinely fits. ...

Disclosure: This article contains affiliate links. If you make a booking through these links, we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. ✅ Quick Answer In Italy, the Carta Platino costs around €840 a year (about €70/month) and suits frequent flyers who’ll use its lounges and hotel status, while the Carta Oro is roughly €240 a year and free the first year for dining and everyday Membership Rewards. The Carta Verde offers a lower-fee option at about €84 a year, and the Carta Blu is a genuinely free Amex that still earns Membership Rewards points — a standout most other markets don’t offer. The honest Italian verdict first Italy is one of the rare markets where Amex hands you a free card that still earns Membership Rewards — the Carta Blu. That single fact makes the €840 Carta Platino far harder to justify than its prestige implies. So before you reach for the famous one: if you won’t use lounges and credits, the free Carta Blu or the Carta Oro is the smarter call. Here’s the full Italian lineup, honestly ranked. ...

Disclosure: This article contains affiliate links. If you make a booking through these links, we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. ✅ Quick Answer In Spain, the Tarjeta Platinum costs around €780 a year (about €65/month) and suits frequent flyers who’ll use its lounges and hotel status, while the Tarjeta Oro costs around €180 a year (about €15/month) and is usually free the first year for dining and everyday Membership Rewards. Spain’s no-fee co-branded cards (tied to an airline or retailer) are the zero-annual-fee alternative for those who don’t want to pay for either. The honest Spanish verdict first In Spain the Tarjeta Platinum carries the same glamour it does everywhere — and the same trap. Let me be blunt: if you won’t fly often enough to drain its lounges and credits, ~€780 a year is money you won’t recoup. The Tarjeta Oro’s free first year means you can test the points game at zero cost first. Here’s the Spanish lineup, honestly ranked. ...

Disclosure: This article contains affiliate links. If you make a booking through these links, we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. ✅ Quick Answer In Switzerland, the Amex Platinum costs CHF 900 a year (often halved to around CHF 450 in the first year) and suits frequent flyers who’ll use its lounges and hotel status, while the Gold costs CHF 350 a year (about CHF 175 the first year) for everyday and dining Membership Rewards. Switzerland is also one of the few markets with a permanently free Amex — the Cashback Card — which earns cash back instead of Membership Rewards at zero annual cost. The honest Swiss verdict first Switzerland is one of the rare markets where Amex gives you a permanently free card — which makes the CHF 900 Platinum a tougher sell than the prestige suggests. So before you commit: if you won’t use the lounges and credits, the free Cashback Card or the CHF 350 Gold serves you better. Here’s the full Swiss lineup, honestly ranked. ...

Disclosure: This article contains affiliate links. If you make a booking through these links, we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. ✅ Quick Answer The best Amex card in Austria is the Platinum at around €690 a year (about €57.50/month) for frequent flyers who use lounges and hotel status, while the Gold costs roughly €192 a year and is often free the first year for dining and everyday Membership Rewards. Austria has no permanently free Payback card like Germany, so the Green — free for its first year — is the lightest entry into Membership Rewards. The honest Austrian verdict first Austria’s Amex lineup looks a lot like Germany’s — with one big difference people miss: there’s no permanently free Payback card here. So the instinct to “just get the free one” doesn’t apply the same way. The good news: every card except the Platinum and Gold is free in the first year, so you can still start at zero cost. But before you reach for the Platinum’s prestige — if you won’t fly often, you’re about to overpay. Here’s the honest ranking. ...